Marianna V. Greenlee

Marianna Virginia Meyers Greenlee passed away May 16, 2024 in Decorah, Iowa.  She was born April 17, 1936 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, to George and Louise (Koenig) Meyers.  Marianna attended Sacred Heart and St. Patrick’s Catholic Schools and graduated Valedictorian from Regis High School in 1954.  She earned her bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire and there she met her love Thomas A. Greenlee of Bloomer, Wisconsin.  They were united in marriage in 1958 and spent 57 years together, raising six children in Cameron, Bloomer, Shawano, and Bayfield, Wisconsin.  In between, Marianna taught kindergarten, elementary, and high school students, serving longest as the French language instructor for Bayfield High School from 1983-1998.  She also assisted Tom in operating a feed business, and was a dedicated volunteer for many church and community organizations.

Following her retirement from education, Marianna and Tom chose to give of their time through extended-stay volunteer programs that took them throughout the United States, including Christian Appalachian Project (Kentucky), the Gullah-Geechee Nation (South Carolina), and Focus on the Family (Colorado).  Upon returning to Eau Claire in 2002, they continued their legacy of volunteerism through the Chippewa Valley Historical Museum and the Catholic Diocese of La Crosse’s Prison Ministry.

Marianna cherished the natural world, planting flowers, feeding songbirds, keeping and training her family’s pets, and beautifying her environment wherever she was.  She loved to fish, and she shared her hobby with her children and grandchildren, often telling them of her successes “with just a simple cane pole and a worm.”  Marianna cheered for the Green Bay Packers and always prayed that no one would get injured during a game, “especially when we play those Vikings.”  Her hospitality was unmatched, and her family regularly teased her about the amount of food she would prepare for holidays and celebrations.  Some of her favorite dishes to serve included liver dumplings, knodel soup, krumkake, lasagna, veal birds, and Special-K bars.  Marianna also loved music and the creative arts.  She played the piano, saxophone, violin, bass violin, and thump bucket, and sang alto with church and community choirs throughout her life.  Marianna shared her talents freely, and her family benefited from her dedication to the arts, although her children didn’t always appreciate her dedication to ensuring they practiced. She loved to dance, to visit art, cultural, and history museums, and she enthusiastically attended both professional concerts and those given by her children and grandchildren.  

Marianna was a parishioner of St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Bloomer, Sacred Heart in Shawano, Holy Family in Bayfield, and Sacred Heart and St. Patrick’s Parish in Eau Claire.  Her Catholic faith shaped her life, and she was tremendously proud to have been an Oblate of the Sisters of St. Benedict for 72 years.

Marianna is preceded in death by her husband, her parents, her brothers George and Donald Meyers, and her son Thomas D. Greenlee.  She is survived by sons Gavin (Tammy) Greenlee of Platteville, Wisconsin, Peter (Susan Sayers) Greenlee of Duluth, Minnesota, Geol (Elana Douglas) Greenlee of Rockwood, Tennessee, and daughters Neri (Tony Wilkerson) Greenlee and Nori (Ross) Hadley of Decorah, Iowa, as well as 10 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren.  Another great-grandchild is due to be born any day.

Marianna will be remembered by the many friends she made and the lives she touched in her short 88 years.  She is loved and missed by her family.

A Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Tuesday, May 21, 2024 at 10:30 AM at St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Bloomer.  There will be a visitation one hour prior to the mass at the church.  Graveside service will be in the Cavalry Cemetery in Bayfield, Wisconsin at 4:00 PM on May 21, 2024.  Special thank you to the dedicated staff at Wellington Place Assisted Living and Nursing Home and Howard County Hospice in Decorah and Cresco Iowa, and Therese Quick at St. Francis Apartments in Eau Claire, Wisconsin

In lieu of flowers Please Direct Memorials to Sacred Heart of Jesus and St. Patrick's Parish in Eau Claire, Wisconsin

Olson Funeral Home in Bloomer is assisting the family.  Online condolences and stories can be shared at olsonfuenralhomebloomer.com